Help- how to clean after chemo/radiation?

[jeanette57]

Hi Group
I was watching a movie at my brothers- my nephew let it slip that my brother shampoos rug and couch after I left because he still thinks 5 weeks after chemo/radiation I am shedding poison via my skin cells. I now understand why they love my patio when they come over-bragging how wonderful my plants are. I talk a month back at the cancer center about cleaning- I was sick all over the bathroom and would not come out until I cleaned every thing- but the maintaince worker brought in a steam cleaner and really cleaned.

The chemo nurse suggest the Shark stream cleaner, when to get on sale and I forgot about it. I have a small cottage 700 ft- 90% southwest title with wood beam rafters- It is easy to clean, but all I use is bleach, soap=baking soda- vinager- My hairless pets and I can't stand hard cleaner that state "hazzard to humans"!

what do you guys do clean?

[ktwmn]

Dear Jeannette,

What you have written really makes me angry about how people treat us-like lepers. It reminds me of all the hushed whispers by my coworkers after I went public about my disease, ironically because I hate when others are secretive. There is still, alarmingly, a medieval ignorance about people who have cancer and a fear that somehow we can transmit our disease by shedding cells. I for one would not visit anyone after finding out that the room had to be steam-cleaned after I left, and that they preferred our meetings outside. I know these are family members and I may be hitting a raw nerve here, and if so I apologize. But everyone sheds dead cells, whether they'be been irradiated or not.

I don't think you need to do any special deep cleaning.

-JM

[Gaelen]

Your family is incorrect and superstitious. Those are the two gentlest words I can think of to describe their behavior. Yes, there are certain things and times about which we need to be careful - bodily fluids, certain intense types of radiation (after which the radiologist will GIVE you a "radiation hazard" card and warn you not to be around kids, pregnant women, etc. But the exposure risk is that the person might get ill from the chemo or rad - not that s/he'll get cancer. And contamination from shedding dead skin cells? Seriously? These are not "contagious," and no one is going to get sick (except from their own fears), much less get cancer, from sitting where you've sat!

Yes, when you were ill in the bathroom (bodily fluids), you did need to clean thoroughly - but regular soap and bleach and thoroughness is one of the toughest cleaning combos there is. You don't need anything stronger than that.

Sit down with your family, and if possible, some support rading materials about how cancer is spread (and not spread.) Explain to them how much their behavior is hurting you. And then, if they still insist on their ignorant, medieval behavior - well, they'd no longer be welcome as guests in my home, but YMMV.

[jeanette57]

Thanks- they cook special foods for me so I am keeping them- I am easy all it took was fresh chocolste chip cookies at front desk at cancer center and I switched

They have always been germo-pho-bics (spell)- so I understand- never understood it! Mom and are campers- out in nature - outhouses etc- went from tent to 13 foot trailer to big 15 ft tailer- if I survive this brain intact (chemo brain really hit hard) will look for a 16 ft trailer with a bathroom. I AM NOT sure how the stoma and camping are going to blend- I do a lot up packing- lifting etc since mom is 88 - she supervises. Again will have to figure things out!

I have a xbox loving gamer coming to stay (family) while I am in hospital/rehab. I do want it clean for him- He may stay a few weeks after loves getting a place all to his self-He put a hand rail on my headboard for me and helps get out of my fluffy bed. I have double temp...toppers

thanks again- now on to getting air conditioning- going to be interesting for desert rat (Tucson who thinks 60-70s are cold).

[Gaelen]

Well, not to stray too fat OT, but until I became bedridden a month ago, I considered myself a camper, too - in fact one of my challenges is figuring out how much camping stuff to give away and how much to make up into a 2nd camping box for my dog friends to use on our annual camping trip at a local state park. I've had a permanent colostomy since a year after my dx in 2004, and I promise you, even relatively primitive camping is NO problem with an ostomy!

I last camped at the end of Sept/beginning of Oct, 6 days at Sampson State Park in Romulus NY, right across the road from the Seneca Army Depot. That trip (the annual dog show camping trip) is the one where we do it up like the other half lives - rent a fully equipped 28 ft travel trailer from a family who trucks it up to the site and hauls it back home when we're done. All we have to do is show up w/our dogs and our stuff. The SP has fully outfitted shower houses w/5 toilets, 3 sinks, a big utility sink for clothes and dishes, and two free hot water showers, one setup each for men and women. Shower houses are w/in walking distance of all sites in each loop, so it's far from primitive - altho people who consider a Motel6 camping might think it's primitive.

But have you ever seen "RV Crazy" on the travel channel? I saw it during a chemo infusion my first year of treatment and promised myself if I ever made it to NED, I was gonna move up from tent camping to teardrop trailer camping. What came my way after I'd saved up some cash and went into my first remission was a 5x10 Sunspot - a vintage tiny travel trailer from the late 70s that had no water, no propane hook-ups, no electricity. One of the previous owners had partially "restored" it by ripping out the leaking water tank, the propane lines and the tiny kitchen that had been in the original design. It was a few inches taller than a teardrop, but otherwise not much bigger, and very bare bones. Weighed about 600 lbs, towed like a dream, and was perfect for me, 2 dogs and a cat.

Most of my camping was in one of the 6 state parks within an hour of my house, alone. A couple times a year, I also went to vintage trailer or teardrop "gatherings," where we all check out each others' rigs. When I camped alone, I let someone know where I'd be - just like the safety precautions for hiking alone. And at a gathering, you're never "alone" - I had guys falling all over themselves to help me set up and tear down, just so they could see my vintage rig up close. The cool thing about the tiny trailers, though, is that a single person who travels light CAN manage them on her own. I got real good at learning to travel light, and downsizing. After my 2nd recurrence was dx'd, with bone mets, my doc didn't want me camping anymore, except with friends. So I sold my Sunspot to a guy who'd admired it. But as I seemed to get stronger, my doc said it would be ok to camp again if I wasn't alone - and a camping friend was selling his homebuilt 4x8 teardrop. So I bought it!

I was only able to take her out 1 night, in my brother-in-law's back pasture (and walked to the house for water and used a porta-potti for "facilities." Then the weather turned, and I put her up for the winter - and unfortunately, my health took a few downtunrs while the seasons changed. But I'm glad I was able to take her out even once!

Many NY state parks, country and town camping ares offer only primitive facilities - no electric, only cold running water, pit toilets. I've used a number of them - stoma and all. In fact, in some ways, the stoma can make camping easier. it was harder to learn to pare down and travel as ultralight as possible, so there's no real heavy lifting when I get to camp. Got a hitch buddy so hitching up was a breeze, switched to canvas (soft) expens and crates for the dogs, pared down my camp kitchen to the bare essentials. I put everything in soft carriers, or totes that would only hold a certain weight so I wouldn't over-pack.

You can camp, Jeanette. I've been doing it for 8 years with an ostomy. It'll be a cakewalk.

[jeanette57]

Gaelen
Thanks so much! I had a Uhaul 13ft trailer and found in a crazy man's junk yard a Trillium 4500 (google) for 2 grand. I had a fork lift it out and then opened it to a perfect inside. However, some yahoo took out the bathroom and made storage area. Ok, we loved it. Two fat ladies, 4 dogs and 3 months camping mostly in CA. We love Lompoc CA and Vandenburg Air Force base. We are NOT and never will be light packers. My vehicle and trailer are sooooo packed we lose gas mileage. My mom is a horder so you can imagine the fights we have over every little item.

Well, going to visit a friend who just had the pancerous cancer surgery. I have a nephew coming to do yard work, and brainstorm about his lazy 13yr daughter who will not get up and go to school. I already told him, take TV, Internet and cell phone away (place them here in my house). One book and report to be graded a week. I am the teacher so guess they figure I can help! Ha!

Jeanette at 57

[sadysue]

Wow, talk about adding insult to injury! Don't lose any sleep over "shedding" on anyone - your family is being ridiculous. Clean the way you normally would and if anyone doesn't like it, it's their problem, not your's.

[Peabody5422]

I remember when my dog back in the 1980s was DX with cancer (Boxer) and my grandmother told my dad to have him put down. He could be contagious. Things change slowly.

[esk2poo]

Well I gues it's just ignorance. You can choose your friends but you can't choose your family and kids say the darnedest things. The only thing we worried about was the bathroom but I had my own and the kids were told they could not use it. I also suffered from recurring c-diff infections so we were very careful with that. The on
Y thing that kills it is bleach. You would have thought I would have learned because I ruined so many clothes with bleach stains. That was alright though because I lost 65 pounds and needed new clothes anyway.
Good luck and God bless.
Allen